PARKES.- The National Gallery of Australia announces the featured artists in Full Throttle, an exhibition exploring the art and culture of one of the most potent and persistent symbols of the modern era: the automobile.

Bringing together over 200 works by over 60 artists and collectives, Full Throttle will open at the National Gallery in Kamberri/Canberra on 5 December 2026, showing until 11 April 2027.

Fuelled by the legacy of the film Mad Max, Full Throttle presents the car as a lens through which to examine contemporary life. Featuring works in a range of medium including sculpture, painting, installation, textiles, video and works on paper, Full Throttle showcases leading First Nations, Australian and international artists who have examined the myths, meanings and cultural power of the car. It includes significant new acquisitions and commissions, key works from the national collection, and major loans from public and private collections across Australia and internationally.

New and commissioned works include a special montage of Mad Max by its creator George Miller, a large-scale beach carpark tableau by Billy Bain featuring a ute fabricated in recycled timber accompanied by ceramic figures, a video work by Tracey Moffatt and Gary Hillberg mining cinematic imagery to explore and critique representation, stereotypes and cultural mythologies, and a monumental woven Toyota Hilux created by the Tjanpi Desert Weavers.

Several artists including Robert Fielding and Gaypalani Waṉambi, transform car parts and road signs into monumental works that speak to the integration of the automobile within Australia’s vast landscape.

The exhibition features works by major international artists including Jordan Wolfson, Kimsooja and Catherine Opie. Revisiting her breakthrough car hood works, Judy Chicago has combined her signature biomorphic imagery with a vibrant palette to create an exquisite painted car hood. Also included is Erwin Wurm’s alternative take on a luxury car, Pipilotti Rist’s audio-visual work from the 47th Venice Biennale and iconic fashion pieces by Thierry Mugler and Jeremy Scott for Moschino.

Additional highlights include Sarah Lucas' cigarette-covered Jaguar, Trent Parke's celebrated Bathurst series, Margaret Dodd's iconic ceramic Holdens, and a herd of Patricia Piccinini’s Vespa-inspired sculptures.

In a newly created painting by Kaylene Whiskey, the exhibition comes full circle. Overlaying her iconic candy-coloured palette and comic-book style onto a vintage Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome billboard poster, Whiskey creates a vibrant world of connection, humour and cultural continuity.

Full Throttle is curated by National Gallery Director Nick Mitzevich and Associate Curator, Asian & Pacific Art Beatrice Thompson. The exhibition is accompanied by a major publication, special public programs, a podcast, a four-part film series and an interactive engagement space designed by exhibiting artists Isabel and Alfredo Aquilizan.

Nick Mitzevich, Director, National Gallery: ‘The Full Throttle exhibition examines the automobile as one of the defining symbols of the modern era. It brings together the work of over 60 artists who challenge, celebrate and interrogate the car in equal measure, offering new ways of thinking about its influence on culture, society and our collective imagination. We are thrilled to share this free exhibition over summer with our audiences.’

Beatrice Thompson, Associate Curator, Asian & Pacific Art, National Gallery: ‘Full Throttle presents a diverse range of artistic responses to the automobile, revealing it as a connector and divider, a saviour and destroyer, a practical object and a powerful cultural metaphor. From suburban realism to post-apocalyptic fantasy, the works invite visitors to reconsider the profound influence of cars on contemporary life.’

We are grateful to Principal Patron Tim Fairfax AC; Major Exhibition Patrons the Gwinnett Family and ROH Wheels; Exhibition Patrons Philip Bacon AO, Sue Cato AM, and Ryan Stokes AO and Claire Stokes; Exhibition Supporters Peter and Sandra Bassanetti, and Penelope Seidler AO; and Exhibition Donors Alexander and Farinne Georgeopoulos, Fiona Martin-Weber and Tom Hayward, Jan Murphy, John Starr, and Sydney Williams KC. We are also thankful for the support of the American Friends of the National Gallery of Australia. We thank our Government, Corporate and Media partners for their ongoing support.

Full Throttle is a free major exhibition at the National Gallery in Kamberri/Canberra on display from 5 December 2026 – 11 April 2027.